Bizarre structures in the desert in China discovered on Google Maps

What is China building in a remote desert area? Vast, unidentified, structures
have been spotted by satellites in the barren Gobi desert, raising questions
about what China might be building in a region it uses for its military,
space and nuclear programmes.

The first image looks like a random arrangement of lines. Could it be a
targeting grid for satellites? Perhaps they're roads? Some conspiracy
theorists have suggested this pattern matches the layout of streets in
Washington, DC. Maybe it's just the world's biggest QR code?...